New Beginnings
by Cal reflector
Summary: At last Hanai does the unthinkable and confesses to Yakumo... with predictable results. How will this development affect his relationship with Mikoto? The story of two out-of-love friends who will discover that happiness lies closer than they imagined.
1. Default Chapter

Cal-Reflector's notes: This is my first fanfiction, a Flute Faction story centered on Hanai Haruki and Suou Mikot. The story is based primarily on events in the manga, as the anime moves too slowly and deviates from the original at certain points.

Disclaimer: School Rumble is the property of Kobayashi Jin, to whom I own hours of endless mirth and teeth-grinding frustration, the latter from the way he plays with and leads us on; fans of the manga will understand.

New Beginnings

Chapter 1: The End of a Dream

Hanai waited atop the school building, his eyes surveying the lively bustle of the activity below in the middle of lunch break. His tall form was still and erect as he prepared for the coming confrontation, one that was long overdue. That morning he had placed in Tsukamoto Yakumo's shoe locker a letter which asked for her to meet him during lunch break. The wording was plain and discreet, but he was certain that by now his feelings for her were apparent enough that the significance of the letter could not be missed by even by the densest of minds…

… Unless that mind belonged to Tsukamoto Tenma, Yakumo's elder sister. Even now Hanai could not comprehend what work of aberrant genetic metamorphosis had created these two completely different individuals from the same stock. Hanai did not dislike Tenma, who apparently was a caring sibling to Yakumo and had a circle of loyal friends, she was simply… different. One might say she was a bit of a dolt and simpleton, a combination of a cheerful sunflower and a brick wall. Unable to reconcile the sisters' radically polar dispositions to the force of natural selection, Hanai contemplated the possibility of a Higher Being accomplishing the deed with intelligent design and not a little sense of humor.

The sound an opening door brought Hanai's mind away from his drifting thoughts, and he turned to see Yakumo, standing in front of the doorway with her hands folded demurely before her. "You wished to see me, Sempai?"

"Yes, and thank you for meeting me, Yakumo-kun." A moment passed between the two in which no words were exchanged, one mentally silent and the other feeling uneasy at her inability to read his thoughts on this occasion, though her instincts had given warning signals to the purpose of Hanai's unusual behavior.

Hanai was the first to break the impasse. "Yakumo-kun, for a long time now I have held deep feelings for you, which I am sure you have noticed."

Yakumo looked towards the ground, and quietly replied "Yes."

"For a long time I was content merely to be near you, looking on from a distance and being a small part of your life when I could... but I was wrong. I grew uncertain about where we stood as the days went by and you never gave reply of how you felt towards me."

"It has been partly my fault as well, for never coming completely clear. But that ends today, the uncertainties, the doubts and questions that belies our relationship: Yakumo-kun, will you go out with me?"

Yakumo looked up, a startled expression on her face. She gazed at Hanai's concentrated countenance, which was as placid and calm as the clouds in the skies above, but beneath the surface she felt slight tremors that spread like subtle ripples across the ocean that was Hanai Haruki's state of mind.

Hanai watched Yakumo, his heart racing with ache and expectancy, his display of emotions restrained only with utmost effort. She wrung her hands, the internal struggle apparent upon her face. At last she folded her hands in front of her and bowed.

"I'm sorry…"

The bell signaling the end of the lunch break sounded, but neither made a leave to move. Minutes of silence passed before Yakumo looked up after to see that Hanai had turned away. She strove to find words, but came up empty.

"... I understand." Hanai's tone was emotionless, Yakumo stood still. "Sorry to have taken up your time, Tsukamoto-san."

The switch to the use of formal address caused Yakumo's heart to sink. "Sempai…"

"Please… leave me alone for a while."

After she left, Hanai remained in his place. The courtyard and hallways emptied, students reentered their classrooms, the bell for the beginning of afternoon classes rang and silence fell over the school. Hanai did not remain motionless for long however, as soon his shoulders began to shake. He slumped down, the wall to his back, and took off his glasses as the internal restraints snapped and the flood burst forth.

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Please look forward to the next chapter. Reviews are welcome.  



	2. Exit Wounds

Author's notes: Pardon the stingy first chapter that had little meat. Hope I make up for it with this one.

Disclaimer: School Rumble is the property of Kobayashi Jin.

New Beginnings

Chapter 2: Exit Wounds

Mikoto had been on an errand when the afternoon classes began, but as she had been excused to carry out a task for the teacher, she was in no rush to hurry back. In any case, the next period was mathematics, a subject for which she had little enthusiasm.

Thus she took her time, and as she passed by the stairwell she bumped into Yakumo, who was descending with more than usual haste.

"Yakumo, how come you aren't in class already?"

"Suou-senpai… I… umm… sorry, I need to hurry back." Yakumo bowed and walked away quickly, leaving a mystified Mikoto behind. The look of unease and discomfort on Tenma's sister's face did not escape her notice however, and Mikoto returned to class wondering what might have happened to upset the girl's habitual calmness. Upon taking her seat, she realized that Hanai's seat was vacant. Leaning over to Eri, who was seated to her right, she asked quietly, "Hey, where's Hanai?"

"Who knows? Haven't seen him in here since lunch."

The answer rather unsettled Mikoto, who couldn't recall one incident of studious and steadfast Hanai skipping class... Well, except once, and the last time he missed a class, he ended up missing the entire afternoon and subsequently disappeared for a few days. Mikoto ended up following and tracking him down into the mountains, where she found him undergoing hellish training in preparation for a final confrontation against Harima. Nothing came of it in the end, and Mikoto had left him, taking with her the satisfaction of karate-kicking some sense into him for worrying his parents and… the curious words of advice from a mysterious old geezer:

"_If you want him, now's the chance."_

"_What! No no, him and I aren't like that…"_

"_Fufufu, it is because you possess such strength, that you have a hard time allowing men to see your feminine side, right? He's the kind of man who will understand such things, you know…"_

Mikoto laid her head down on the desk's cool surface. The recollection of the awkward conversation brought to her some degree of annoyance… and something else as well. It was true, that out of all her friends, even Eri, Hanai was the one who seemed to understand her best, and he had shown himself to be surprisingly perceptive of her feelings on several occasions. But even so… there was no way that she could consider him in a romantic light. Not Haruki, the boy across the street whom she walked to school with since they were children. Not Haruki, the chubby book worm who she trained with in his family's doujou and grew up to become her best sparring partner…

That just wasn't possible, right? Just because they were childhood friends, or maybe it was because they were childhood friends, they just didn't see each other that way.

Mikoto sighed, blaming, somewhat unjustly, Hanai for causing her to think of these frustrating questions. "Ano baka… if he pulls the same stunt again and disappears without a word, I won't be letting him off with just a kick to the face…"

Hanai did not return to class that day, and after waiting for him for a while after school, Mikoto picked up his bag and returned home. There were no lessons scheduled at the Hanai's this afternoon, and on these days Mikoto and Hanai—when the two of them had the doujou to themselves—would have their customary sparring. It was something that she always looked forward to, for though group training and teaching the kids were enjoyable, Hanai was the only one who could match her skills on an equal basis. Mikoto knew not whether he would be there today, but she wasn't about to alter her own habits because of his strange behavior. So she packed her bag and walked over to the house that was just opposite from her own. She rapped on the door lightly and was soon greeted by the familiar face of Hanai's mother.

"Ah, Mikoto-chan, welcome!"

"Hello, obasan." Mikoto bowed to the woman who had over the years had become family to her; as the wife of her master and the mother of her childhood friend, she was one of the most familiar people in Mikoto's life. "I've brought Haruki's school bag, he left them at school."

"Thank you very much! Sorry to have troubled you…"

"It is not a problem. Is Haruki home?"

"He is, but… I don't know what the matter with that boy is; he came home much earlier than usual, and has been in the doujou since." Concern for her son was apparent on the lady's face, further reinforcing Mikoto's earlier premonition about his absence.

"Well, I'll be joining him then…" Excusing herself, Mikoto made her way towards the doujou adjacent to the main house. In the walkway, she could hear the rhythmic sounds of impact coming in rapid succession from the practice hall, and thought that Hanai seemed in high spirits today. She changed into her uniform and stepped into the doujou, with a mind to be extra hard on him for making her and his mother worry…

… but the sight before her stopped her dead in her tracks. Hanai had been hitting against one of the heavily padded wooden beams that reached from floor to ceiling. Sweat streaked down his body as he attacked it ferociously, unaware that he was using so much strength that his knuckles had begun bleeding, and was soon covering the white canvas with angry red fist marks.

"Hanai! What are you doing!" When she saw that he did not respond to her voice, Mikoto ran to him and tried to pin his arms. "Calm down, what's gotten into you!"

"Don't touch me!" Hanai struggled and shook her off, and continued to punish himself. In his unguarded stance, Mikoto had no trouble in sweeping him off balance and tackling him, this time pinning him securely to the floor.

"Stop this! Get a hold of yourself!" After a few abortive attempts, Hanai finally stopped struggling against Mikoto's hold, and both of them breathed raggedly as they tried to catch their breaths. After she felt that Hanai had calmed down sufficiently, Mikoto released him and stood up. She opened the door to an adjacent room where she knew the first aid kit was stored, and soon returned with the case and a bottle of water. Without a word, she knelt down beside Hanai, who remained sitting still the whole time, and began to dress his wounds. She grimaced as she took his right hand and examined it; though the damage was superficial, the cuts were numerous, and scars may be left as the skin healed. She took some gauze, dabbed it with alcohol, and was about to start cleaning the ugly cuts when he spoke.

"… Aren't you going to ask why?"

Mikoto didn't look up, but continued to work on his hands in a practiced manner. When she had finished bandaging the first hand, she replied, "Something to do with Yakumo-kun, right?

The silence which came as a reply confirmed her suspicions. It really was not difficult to figure out, since there were few things in the world that could truly upset Hanai, but to drive him to such a state… "Hanai…" She did not wish to pry further, but concern for her childhood friend overrode this inhibition. "What happened?"

Behind the lenses of his glasses, Hanai's eyes were blank as the painful event replayed itself in his mind. At the moment however, his body, exhausted physically and mentally, was unable to react further to the ache that seemed to linger on his every nerve. His reply was direct and flat. "Yakumo-kun… turned me down."

Mikoto's eyes widened in surprise, and when she recalled the encounter with Yakumo earlier at school that day, everything fell into place. Both remained silent after that, further words being unnecessary. When she had finished dressing his wounds and returned the first aid kit to its place, she came back to where Hanai was seated.

"Hanai, I know how hard it must be, but… it's not like you to be so rash. Don't you see how worried obasan and ojisan will be when they see what you've done to your hands? And myself as well… " Mikoto shook her head sadly as she regarded her childhood friend's misery. The sight of Hanai reminded her of how she had felt herself, on that fateful evening several months ago. She stood up, at a loss for words to console him, and eventually offered him her hand.

"You know… you're not the only who has gone through this sort of thing."

Hanai regarded the hand extended to him, and then lifted his gaze to Mikoto's face, where he saw a small smile produced with much effort. Slowly, he reached out to her, and she pulled him to his feet.

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Thank you for reading. The next chapter will be somewhat slower in coming, since I will be struggling with midterms for the coming week. Should I come through more or less in one piece, I will continue work on this story. 


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